Scott Parker provides update on Burnley's crunch squad decisions ahead of Premier League return
Burnley are still mulling over some key decisions as they begin to switch their focus to next season in the Premier League.
Under EFL rules, the Clarets have until Saturday, May 17 – two weeks on from their season finale against Millwall – to officially signal which players they will be keeping on and those they’ll be letting go.
Burnley have just five first-team players out of contract this summer – most noticeably, CJ Egan-Riley and captain Josh Brownhill.
Speaking recently, Clarets boss Scott Parker revealed he was “confident” the club would be able to tie them down to longer-term deals, but there’s still been no news on their futures.
Club legend Ashley Barnes could also depart unless a new contract is agreed, as the short-term deal he agreed in January is soon due to expire.
Nathan Redmond, meanwhile, is also out of contract, albeit the club do hold a one-year option on his current deal. Jonjo Shelvey, meanwhile, looks likely to move on.
Elsewhere, Bashir Humphreys, Jaidon Anthony, Marcus Edwards and Zian Flemming will all see their loan deals turned permanent. As it currently stands, it appears Jeremy Sarmiento will be returning to his parent club Brighton.
Speaking at the club’s promotion parade on Tuesday, the Burnley Express asked Parker if the key decisions over the retained list had now been made.
“Not yet,” he replied. “We'll probably get to the final stage of that over the next couple of days.
“As you can imagine, it’s been pretty full on for the last three or four days, or for the last week to be honest.
“After the Sheffield United win, it’s been pretty joyous and a lot of celebrating. While there's been some early conversations, we're probably not at the final stage of really understanding exactly where we are. But we'll get there over the next couple of days.”
EFL rules are clear in that clubs must officially notify players by the third Saturday in May, with clubs involved in play-off campaigns given extra grace; with the deadline extending to four days after their final match.
Clubs are not duty-bound to make announcements on their ‘released and retained lists’, though they are published as a matter of routine.